An Illinois Registered Nurse has been charged with stealing a deceased resident’s credit card and using the card on a $1700 shopping spree. The RN has been arrested with a preliminary charge of aggravated identity theft.
The resident’s family discovered on December 22, 2020, that there were 21 unauthorized transactions on their father’s credit card that occurred after his death on November 24, 2020. The Illinois detectives discovered that one of the transactions was a $405 utility payment in Florida. The utility bill had been paid with the deceased resident’s name on the receipt eight days after his death. Other charges on the deceased resident’s credit card included a $299 video game, food, and gas.
The detectives used Facebook to search the name on the utility account, and it showed to be a woman whose mother worked at the nursing home where the resident died. The detectives also obtained video surveillance from various businesses that had recorded the fraudulent charges, and they were able to identify the RN making the purchases. A check of the RN’s work record indicated that she was the charge nurse for the unit when the resident expired.
During a Miranda interview, the RN admitted to finding the credit card under the deceased resident’s bedside table. The RN also admitted to making the fraudulent charges on the credit card. In addition to the identify theft charges, she was also arrested on a preliminary charge of unlawful possession of a controlled drug. A body search found one hydrocodone bitartrate pill for which the RN had no prescription.
The detectives discovered that the RN had a previous conviction in 2018 for possession of methamphetamine, in which she was sentenced to two years’ probation, and she had a 2009 conviction for a first offense of writing a bad check. It is not known at this time if the nursing facility conducted a thorough background check of the employee before hire.
Issue:
It is the obligation of each nursing facility to protect residents from misappropriation of funds and other personal property. Upon admission to the nursing facility, each residents’ belongings, including any credit cards or cash, should be inventoried. Residents and their families should be reminded to notify nursing staff when new items are brought into the facility so that they can be logged in as residents’ personal belongings. Residents should be discouraged from keeping large amounts of cash or credit cards within their possession. Each resident should be offered a lock-box to store valuables. Upon discharge from the facility, the resident or a family member, with a staff member, should verify that all personal belongings of the resident have been returned. Additionally, it is imperative that background checks are completed on all employees before hire.
Discussion Points
- Review your policies on misappropriation of resident’s belongings or funds and screening of new hires. Update as needed.
- Train all staff about abuse, neglect, and exploitation of residents, including misappropriation of personal belongings or funds. Document that the training occurred, and place the signed document in each employee’s education file.
- Periodically audit to ensure that resident belongings are logged into each resident’s personal effects inventory checklist. Conduct audits to ensure all new employees undergo complete background screenings.
